Short Story Writing Guide

GROUP 1

Mustapa P. Rasid

FERNANDEZ

SHORT STORY

• a piece of fiction that has a limited number of words, only a few characters and one theme.

Short stories may classify into:

1. Anecdotes – it is about to an interesting or funny event. It covers a wide variety of stories and tables and which can be basically subject under the sun.

• It usually serve to make the listener or reader laugh or ponder over a topic

The purpose is to reminisce our past, to have fun and to persuade and inspire people. In addition, it could be part to our natural conversation with our people.

1. Fable – come from a Latin word “fibula” which means to speak. It can be define as a concise and brief story intended to provide a moral lesson. Usually performed by an animal which has the ability to speak and to reason.

Ex. The Monkey and the Turtle

      The Ant and Grasshopper

1. Fairy Tales – these tales fall between traditional literature, it is about on magical element and always have a happy ending.

Ex. Sleeping Beauty

       Cinderella

1. Parable – a short story used to illustrate a moral and spiritual lesson

ELEMENTS of a SHORT STORY

1. Character - A character is a person, or sometimes even an animal, who takes part in the action of a short story or other literary work. A character may identify into antagonist and protagonist.

Characters are may describe through its physical appearance, attitude,

1. Setting - The setting of a short story is the time and place in which it happens. Authors often use descriptions of landscape, scenery, buildings, seasons or weather condition to provide a strong sense of setting.

1. Plot - A plot is a series of events and character actions that relate to the central conflict. And used to describe the events that make up a story or the main part of a story.
2. Conflict - The conflict is a struggle between two people or things in a short story. The main character is usually on one side of the central conflict.

On the other side, the main character may struggle against another important character, against the forces of nature, against society, or even against something inside himself or herself (feelings, emotions, illness)

• It is a struggle which create tension that must be resolved. Without a conflict nothing would happen.

2 types of Conflict

1. Internal Conflict – a struggle within inside itself

2. External Conflict – a struggle outside itself

Conflict may also classify into some categories:

1. Man vs. Man
2. Man vs. Nature
3. Man vs. Self
4. Man vs. Society

1. Theme – the theme is the central idea or belief in a short story

1. Point-of-View – it determines the angles and perception of the story.

• First Person Point Of View:
   - First person is used when the main character is telling the story. This is the kind that uses the "I" narrator. As a reader, you can only experience the story through this person's eyes. So you won't know anything about the people or events that this character hasn't personally experienced.

• Second Person Point Of View:
  - Second person point of view is generally only used in instructional writing. It is told from the perspective of "you".

• Third Person Point Of View:
  - Third person POV is used when your narrator is not a character in the story. Third person uses the "he/she/it" narrator and it is the most commonly used POV in writing.

1. Limited: Limited means that the POV is limited to only one character which means that the narrator only knows what that character knows. With third person limited you can choose to view the action from right inside the character's head or from further away, where the narrator has more access to information outside the protagonist's viewpoint.
2. Multiple: This type is still in the "he/she/it" category, but now the narrator can follow multiple characters in the story. The challenge is making sure that the reader knows when you are switching from one character to another. Make the switch obvious with chapter or section breaks.
3. Omniscient: This point of view still uses the "he/she/it" narration but now the narrator knows EVERYTHING. The narrator isn't limited by what one character knows, sort of like the narrator is God. The narrator can know things that others don't, can make comments about what's happening, and can see inside the minds of other characters.